Snowheight wrote: 'Trails! .. doin' good thanks for asking. .. I'd say that the most sure-fire way to have life surprise you is to develop an expectation about the future. The material world "spins ever madly on" with it's demands but with each passing year the ephemerality of moment-to-moment existence seems to deepen into an ever lighter dance .. if ya' know what I mean, and I have a sneaking suspicion that you very likely do. Image

My pleasure on the poem. Was from a little over a year ago, but I figured some of you here might like it. Hope the job isn't banging your brain and stressing you out too much, hope your running or whatever else you do these days is going well and best wishes to you and your family.

Thanks, Snowy. Always a pleasure to hear from you and I love this: "he ephemerality of moment-to-moment existence seems to deepen into an ever lighter dance ..". Could not agree more. Although sometimes I wonder if its just getting older that brings this perspective rather than anything to do with spirituality
Cheers, rt

Snowheight wrote: 'Trails! .. doin' good thanks for asking. .. I'd say that the most sure-fire way to have life surprise you is to develop an expectation about the future. The material world "spins ever madly on" with it's demands but with each passing year the ephemerality of moment-to-moment existence seems to deepen into an ever lighter dance .. if ya' know what I mean, and I have a sneaking suspicion that you very likely do. Image

My pleasure on the poem. Was from a little over a year ago, but I figured some of you here might like it. Hope the job isn't banging your brain and stressing you out too much, hope your running or whatever else you do these days is going well and best wishes to you and your family.

Thanks, Snowy. Always a pleasure to hear from you and I love this: "he ephemerality of moment-to-moment existence seems to deepen into an ever lighter dance ..". Could not agree more. Although sometimes I wonder if its just getting older that brings this perspective rather than anything to do with spirituality
Cheers, rt

Fair question!

There are as many possible descriptions of the scent of a rose as there are people who have lived, but the commonality between them gives us the meaning of the word sweet. Similarly, in relative terms, there are many ways to come to peace with this life while we're still here. Yes, it's a natural and common experience for resistance to living to trail off with age.

But the permanent cessation of any shred of existential dread, the end of the possibility of any real and meaningful regret, and the unshakable certainty of the nature of personal death, isn't a relative matter, although language and the reasoning faculty of mind will always betray us on this topic if we approach it with them.

One notable relative difference here is that a mature acceptance of what life brings usually sacrifices passion. In the lightness of the dance, there remains a potential intensity of engagement with the music, the moves, and our dance partners.

Stop talking. Hear every sound as background. Look straight ahead and focus. Take one deep breath. This is you. This is Now.

Snowy wrote: ut the permanent cessation of any shred of existential dread, the end of the possibility of any real and meaningful regret, and the unshakable certainty of the nature of personal death, isn't a relative matter, although language and the reasoning faculty of mind will always betray us on this topic if we approach it with them.

One notable relative difference here is that a mature acceptance of what life brings usually sacrifices passion. In the lightness of the dance, there remains a potential intensity of engagement with the music, the moves, and our dance partners.

So lovely, Snowy. You should be a poet. But then you are one .

I do agree that a mature acceptance would not give you all the benefits (that you so eloquently state) of self-realization. And yes, the constant recognition of yourself is a delight. I was listening to a lovely talk yesterday by an Advaita Vedantin swami and he said (and I paraphrase at the risk of anthropomorphizing): The benefits to you (the jiva) of recognizing your true self are obvious. But there is also a 'benefit' to the self---manifestation allows a mirror for the self to see and experience itself. And as you say--what a lovely dance it is to see! Such a lovely leela.

And yet I find that the true love affair is with the unmanifested self. How well that love and longing for yourself is sated when you turn inward.

Snowy wrote: ut the permanent cessation of any shred of existential dread, the end of the possibility of any real and meaningful regret, and the unshakable certainty of the nature of personal death, isn't a relative matter, although language and the reasoning faculty of mind will always betray us on this topic if we approach it with them.

One notable relative difference here is that a mature acceptance of what life brings usually sacrifices passion. In the lightness of the dance, there remains a potential intensity of engagement with the music, the moves, and our dance partners.

So lovely, Snowy. You should be a poet. But then you are one .

I do agree that a mature acceptance would not give you all the benefits (that you so eloquently state) of self-realization. And yes, the constant recognition of yourself is a delight. I was listening to a lovely talk yesterday by an Advaita Vedantin swami and he said (and I paraphrase at the risk of anthropomorphizing): The benefits to you (the jiva) of recognizing your true self are obvious. But there is also a 'benefit' to the self---manifestation allows a mirror for the self to see and experience itself. And as you say--what a lovely dance it is to see! Such a lovely leela.

And yet I find that the true love affair is with the unmanifested self. How well that love and longing for yourself is sated when you turn inward.

Oh, I must admit to the enjoyment of basking in the kindness of your words Mrs. 'Trails.

Yes looking inward ... there is a simple sublime sanity to the vastness of just being that will ever confound the analytical mind.

Stop talking. Hear every sound as background. Look straight ahead and focus. Take one deep breath. This is you. This is Now.

Correlation is not causation, of course, but as i bump along, i'm more and more convinced that all of our experiences in consciousness have a direct relationship to brain neurochemistry. This is not to say that there is nothing going on in the physical and non-physical space/time continuum that is not in our brains - not at all. But Unity experiences can be traced to specific activity in the brain.

Andy

A person is not a thing or a process, but an opening through which the universe manifests. - Martin Heidegger
There is not past, no future; everything flows in an eternal present. - James Joyce

Sighclone wrote:Correlation is not causation, of course, but as i bump along, i'm more and more convinced that all of our experiences in consciousness have a direct relationship to brain neurochemistry. This is not to say that there is nothing going on in the physical and non-physical space/time continuum that is not in our brains - not at all. But Unity experiences can be traced to specific activity in the brain.

Andy

I'd guess the same could be said about the taste of an orange, the first time you heard Sgt. Pepper and the vision of your wife's face on her wedding day?

Stop talking. Hear every sound as background. Look straight ahead and focus. Take one deep breath. This is you. This is Now.

I'd guess the same could be said about the taste of an orange, the first time you heard Sgt. Pepper and the vision of your wife's face on her wedding day?

For sure. Or any other discrete experience. But I think an abiding awakening experience has a longer and broader effect - kind of like a gamma-wave backbeat to all consciousness. Mostly speculation, but "Buddha's Brain," which I'm re-reading is hopeful regarding discoveries.

Andy

A person is not a thing or a process, but an opening through which the universe manifests. - Martin Heidegger
There is not past, no future; everything flows in an eternal present. - James Joyce

Hi Andy (and snowy),
Yes, constant practice will rewire the brain (as opposed to a single/novel experience). But we cannot control awakening experiences, all we can do is control our practices. So abiding as awareness is the best way to retrain the brain to shift its primary identity to that of awareness. And that's a lovely perspective from which to live life .
rt

runstrails wrote:Hi Andy (and snowy),
Yes, constant practice will rewire the brain (as opposed to a single/novel experience). But we cannot control awakening experiences, all we can do is control our practices. So abiding as awareness is the best way to retrain the brain to shift its primary identity to that of awareness. And that's a lovely perspective from which to live life .
rt

deep gashos for this.....

* * * * *
Another very interesting experience is synchronous stuff that is outside of the brain that supports awakening, and connections to everything. I've had a challenging period recently with many opportunities to whimper and complain. But there have been other events that have occurred to smooth it over, shed new light, suggest new and unforeseen results, etc. All amusing...

Andy

A person is not a thing or a process, but an opening through which the universe manifests. - Martin Heidegger
There is not past, no future; everything flows in an eternal present. - James Joyce

Hi Andy,
Sorry you've had a challenging period lately. I also had a challenging event happen (to be honest down right painful as hell!), which took a couple months to come out on the other side. I'm glad you had other events to help smooth it over. As the saying goes, "this too shall pass". It might pass like a kidney stone, but it will pass.

I'd guess the same could be said about the taste of an orange, the first time you heard Sgt. Pepper and the vision of your wife's face on her wedding day?

For sure. Or any other discrete experience. But I think an abiding awakening experience has a longer and broader effect - kind of like a gamma-wave backbeat to all consciousness. Mostly speculation, but "Buddha's Brain," which I'm re-reading is hopeful regarding discoveries.

Andy

Well, there's some poetry.

Stop talking. Hear every sound as background. Look straight ahead and focus. Take one deep breath. This is you. This is Now.